WIDNES Vikings produced a much-improved attacking display before going down 32-28 to high-flying Hull at the KC Stadium.
A Widnes win on Humberside would have been one of the shocks of the season so far but Frank Endacott's men looked ready to snatch victory before they were beaten by the clock.
Endacott's main worry may be that his side still look extremely vulnerable when the opposition gets within striking distance of their line.
If they can fix up that aspect of their play, there is no reason why they can't start to pick up wins. The Vikings had centre Gray Viane and winger Richie Barnett on debut and were boosted by the return of inspirational stand-off Owen Craigie.
The burly Australian orchestrated his side's attack and found a willing accomplice in the admirable Aaron Moule. Widnes dominated the early possession and built an 8-0 lead through a Stephen Myler penalty and a Moule-inspired Simon Finnigan try.
It took a while for the home side to establish any sort of attacking platform but once they did get a supply of ball, they quickly hit back.
Stand-off Richard Horne raced over from 20 metres for a converted try and scrum-half Danny Brough put his side on level terms with a penalty goal. Brough's faultless goal kicking was to prove crucial to his team.
Centre Kirk Yeaman put Hull ahead on 29 minutes though the Vikings looked to have a case for a forward pass in the build up. Widnes got back to 14-12 when Moule once more proved too hot to handle for his opposite, but they fell for a sucker punch just before the interval. Yeaman broke free from a scrum deep in Hull territory and showed a clean pair of heels to the cover on an 80-metre dash to the line.
A 20-12 half-time lead flattered the home side.
Widnes started the second half with real purpose with Craigie once more pulling the strings.
First he put in the telling pass, which sent Daniel Frame over and then engineered the break, which saw Finnigan cross for his second try which put the Vikings ahead at 22-20.
Hull's Richard Whiting recovered from being given a torrid time by Moule to field a bomb in the Widnes in-goal to restore his side's lead and winger Nathan Blacklock appeared to wrap the game up with a score wide out. The Vikings had other ideas and a Viane break saw him put Andrew Emelio under the posts to make it 32-28.
They were quickly within sight of the line again before the hooter came to Hull's rescue.
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